The Hong Kong conglomerate run by Asian billionaire
Li Ka-shing
is set to take full ownership of gas distributor
Envestra
after finally reaching the 90 per cent level required to compulsorily acquire the remaining shares.

The interest held by
Cheung Kong Group
in Envestra reached 90.24 per cent on Monday, up from 88.28 per cent as previously advised on August 15, according to a filing to the Australian Securities Exchange early on Tuesday.

The Hong Kong group, whose infrastructure arm already owned about 17.5 per cent of Envestra, is bidding $1.32 a share in cash for Envestra. The offer closes on Thursday.

The bid, which values the target at $2.37 billion, had been inching only slowly to a conclusion but took a leap forward earlier this month when former 33 per cent Envestra ­shareholder
APA Group
decided to sell its stake into the offer, rather than pursue its own rival takeover ambitions.

Cheung Kong still advertised in newspapers this week, urging shareholders to accept the offer, which it warned would not be further extended.

The firm, whose portfolio spans property, life sciences and ­infrastructure, has advised it would take 100 per cent ownership if possible, and delist Envestra from the ASX.

Envestra managing director
Ian ­Little
said last week the management of the Adelaide-based gas distributor would remain with the company, which would see “business as usual" despite the change in ownership.

Mr Little was speaking after ­Envestra reported a 42 per cent jump in full-year net profit to $153 million, despite a 5 per cent softening in gas ­volumes distributed through its ­networks, due to warmer weather.

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Gas volumes carried in the Envestra network have been lifted this financial year by the cold snap affecting much of southern Australia, with revenues almost $3 million ahead of expectations in July alone, the company’s ­management revealed.

The gas distribution company will be Cheung Kong’s first fully owned asset in Australia. It has been outbid several times for infrastructure assets, including Port of Newcastle and the Moomba-Adelaide gas transmission line.

However, the acquisitive group, which has assets in 52 countries, is already being touted as a contender for further assets in Australia, notably the gas pipelines being put up for sale by Britain’s gas major
BG Group
in Queensland that currently form part of its $US20.4 billion ($21.8 billion) Queensland Curtis LNG project.

BG, which is on a drive to monetise assets to redirect funds into ­exploration, is understood to be seeking at least $4 billion for the pipeline, which cost almost $US2.5 billion to build and is due to begin operations late this year.

The size of the price tag is expected to bring together some bidders that might otherwise have acted on their own.

The completion of the Envestra deal will wrap up a takeover battle that has lasted more than a year, after APA first approached Envestra with a scrip-based merger proposal last July.